CLIO, Michigan -- There was no shortage of confections and novelties that a single copper penny could buy 60 years ago.

For kids making the trek into downtown Flint to Kresege's Dime Store or Cook's Drug Store, there was always hardened chunks of Double Bubble or Bazooka for the walk home.

And, if chewing gum wasn't your pleasure, you could always entertain yourself with the precursor to the penny pony -- the penny scale.

It, of course, wasn't as much fun as the pony, but one could imagine an enterprising youngster convincing mom of his need for one last moon pie to get him up to a proper fighting weight.

It was just such a scale, one that most likely made a home at one of the aforementioned shops, that was recently spotted and purchased at auction by B.J. Walker, a longstanding member of the Clio Area Historical Society.

"You would have normally seen these types of scales back near the pharmacy," said Walker, who purchased the 1940s-era scale, now on exhibit at the downtown Clio train depot, for $35. "I can remember going to the store and weighing myself as a kid.

"A lot of the time, these scales were just used for fun. And a lot of people didn't have home scales."

Upon seeing the scale up close, many patrons are quick to point out the posted weight and height guidelines that put the optimal weight for a male standing 5-foot-10 at 164 pounds.

Folks get a good laugh out of that.

"Back then, insurance companies would come up with these (optimal) weight limits for people according to their height," said Walker, who encouraged one female patron, to no avail, to give the scale a try.

Walker, a General Motors retiree, grew up in Clio and is now a member of no fewer than eight local historical organizations.

The Clio Historical Society at the downtown depot on Railroad Street is open on the fourth Tuesday every month from 7-8:30 p.m. In addition, the depot will be open on from 6-9 p.m. on Dec. 5 during the annual "Candlelite Nite" in downtown Clio.

For more information on exhibits or additional viewing hours, contact Joanne Belill at (810) 687-8169.